Keep Your Eyes on the Sky
by Klenta
Summary: 'Keep your eyes on the sky.' It is a curious saying she quotes. How did she get it and why is it so important to her? (Inaccurate preview of Full Circle)


_"Keep your eyes on the sky."_

  
She stood on the open field, her arms hanging loosely at her sides. Although only clad in a t-shirt and shorts, she made no pretense of moving to keep herself warm on this cold night. Her eyes were fixed on the dark starry sky. Everything else was lost upon her senses. 

_"Keep your eyes on the sky."_

It's been many years but those words could never be forgotten. 

*~*~*~* 

"Oji-san, where are we going?" 

"To safety." Blue eyes looked down at her as the man held out his hand. "Come on." The man wasn't her uncle. In fact, he wasn't even related to her. 

But she didn't know his name. She didn't ask and he didn't offer so she called him oji-san and it satisified them both. 

Hand in hand, they walked along the quiet street already abandoned by the people seeking shelter. Mobile Suits had been spotted in the distance and were seen heading to this town. The defenders were at their stations, playing the waiting game. 

Regardless, they walked openly on the streets at a leisurely pace, never slowing, never quickening. They reached their destination mere minutes before the MS arrived. 

They were in front of a warehouse on the dock--silent of human voices but not that of nature. There weren't many warehouses (it was a small town, after all) and the one he wanted was at the end. Actually, the man wanted what was inside this warehouse. On the code pad outside the man size door, he rapidly entered a series of numbers and gained entry. Inside, cargo crates almost filled the warehouse from wall to wall but there was a clear section down the center to the large double doors. 

The man singled out a cargo box that appeared no different from any other except for perhaps its size. But for them, it was very significant. The front lowered, missing the two by a mere meter, to reveal their transport--a jeep. Without removing her backpack, she climbed into the passenger seat and strapped in. On the other side, the man also seated himself and shoved his bag in the leg room on the passenger side. He started the jeep and quickly drove out of the building, only a few centimeters of clearance on either side of the jeep as the doors slowly opened. 

It wasn't that he was afraid of being taken or that he would die in the town. He couldn't be taken, not with the girl still with him and trusting him with her life. He couldn't stay in this town. He threw a look back and his eyes narrowed slightly. The town was rapidly becoming a field of fire. He had hoped he could return and get more of his belongings. No matter. He'll start over like he has so many times before. 

His eyes focused on the ground before him, watching for shadows to warn him of incoming Mobile Suits. His hair whipped back in the wind, convienently taking them out of his eyes. He had no need to look back anymore. The girl was watching. 

"One Mobile Suit." Her voice was level, emotionless. It revealed nothing about her--nothing human like. The voice made her sound like a robot, simply stating facts. Her grey eyes were wide but that meant nothing. She was not awed. She was not afraid. It was simply the way her eyes were. It was the eyes of a child, big and wide. That was exactly what she was, a child, an orphan child because of this war that begun a few years ago. 

She wasn't important--just a child whose parents were lost when Mobile Suits attacked her town and very nearly massacred everyone within it. Her parents were simple people, not even a leader within their community. Their only offense was refusing the MS pilots food. No one wanted to take in these people. They would not help those who killed. For this, the town was wiped out of existence. She was too young to remember any of it and so was spared the grief. 

So those eyes that which did not understand pain watched their rear, keeping herself and the self-appointed guardian alive. "Rifle is up. Left!" The straps dug into her skin as the man went evasive but she didn't complain. She simply continued to watch. 

A few more shots came after them but with the two working together, they were never hit and left the MS and the town behind. They didn't stop until it was the dead of night within a forest where they stopped and rested for the night. 

For the next several years, that was how her life went. Always fleeing with the man. Always watching. Never saying a word of complaint. 

*-*-* 

Years had passed but the man and girl were still together, watching each other's back. In the past year, they had acquired several things vital to their existence--a large flatbed truck and a mobile suit. It was no ordinary mobile suit. It was a Gundam called Wing Gundam Zero--the very one used by Heero Yuy. She found it curious how easily they had gotten their hands on it but she didn't ask. She would be told in time, she always was told eventually. 

She sat on the Gundam's foot; the campfire reflected in her eyes as she watched the man she still called oji-san. He checked and rechecked his gun before placing it in his waistband in the back. Crouching down, he pulled a laptop onto his lap and tapped away at the keys. With a quiet sigh, she laid back and stared up at the dark sky. 

"They're crying for independence. The government does nothing about it except to try to suppress them. But why do civilians get hurt?" 

"Humans are barbarians." 

She rose onto an elbow to look at him. "You're human too." 

"I'm not saying I'm not a barbarian. I am one too." He looked up and across the camp at her. "When you no longer think of the other side as people, you do senseless things." Sensing that she had no more to say, he returned his attention to the screen. 

_When you no longer think of the other side as people, you do senseless things._ For minutes, she stared at him even as the fire began to die out. She slid off the foot and moved to the fire to feed it more fuel--carefully placed twigs to form a sturdier base. Certain that the fire wasn't going to die out anytime soon, she returned to the Gundam and climbed up into the cockpit to do run through the final check for the night or at least as much of the check she knew how to do. Her fingers danced over the controls, starting a low powered sweep of the surrounding area. Keeping her eyes on the screens, she shut down the unnecessary systems and placed the rest on stand-by. 

_When you no longer think of the other side as people, you do senseless things. Were the enemies' death really necessary?_ For months, she accompanied him as he went after various targets on Earth and in space. She would watch him intensely, studying his actions so that one day, if the need ever arose, she could pilot the Gundam herself in combat. For the most part, she avoided looking at his face. It was unsettling, the lack of emotions it displayed. He didn't show much emotion normally anyway but it was like staring at a stone when he piloted. She couldn't fathom the thoughts running through his head. When he was in the seat, she could tell nothing about him. _Are you human? Or are you just an android, oji-san?_

"Anything wrong?" 

She jerked from surprise and saw his face looming over her. "Nothing." Quickly, she vacated the seat and hastened to a spot behind the seat to watch him finish up the check. "Don't you feel anything when you fight?" she blurted out. Embarrassed by her outburst, she looked away at her feet. 

"No." 

"Then how can you be sure you're doing the right thing? You're not human when you fight." 

He tapped a few buttons, shutting down the rest of the unnecessary systems. He looked forward to the forest outside. "There's something you learn when you become a pilot. You can only be happy if you live by your emotions but emotions have no place on the battlefield." He stopped for a few moments. "Anger happens the most. Although it can make you more determined, it can be your downfall. You focus on only one thing and you lose track of everything else. That can get you killed." 

"Will the war ever be over?" 

"No war can go on forever." 

"But it could last for decades. The Middle East was in war for centuries." Her voice grew quiet as she laid her head on the seat. "I want it to be over in my lifetime." 

He turned his head to look at her. "Are you sad?" 

"..." She closed her eyes. "Space is beautiful. Earth is beautiful. Why are people willing to mutilate both for the sake of winning? Why can't they just talk out their differences?!" 

"Because both think they are right. They will have it no other way." 

"Then who do we fight?" 

"Both. Neither. I fight those who would threaten the lives of civilians." 

"You're making an enemy on both sides." 

"What's your reason for wanting the war to end?" 

"Space is beautiful. I want to be up in it without worry of death. I want to go beyond the space colonies and see the other star systems with my own eyes rather than pictures from probes." She sighed. "That's not going to happen. There's no ship in existence that could even carry enough supplies to reach the edge of this solar system." 

"Keep your eyes on the sky." 

Turning her head, she looked out of the corner of her eyes at him. "What?" 

"Keep your eyes on the sky. If you wish hard enough, you will succeed one day. One day you will not see Earth's sky or its satelites. You'll see the sky of another. So keep your eyes on the sky." 

With the nimbleness only a child could have, she bounded out of the cockpit and slid down to the ground. Straightening, she stared up at the sky. 

_"Keep your eyes on the sky." _

*~*~*~* 

_"Keep your eyes on the sky."_

"I will end the war like we wanted, oji-san." She turned away from the sky and to the Gundam that waited expectantly. With it, she will end this foolish war. The road was long and it was going to be lonely. At the end, she will begin another--the road to her childhood wish. 


End file.
